Ecard Maurice Bourgogne Blanc Chardonnay 2014
| Country: | France |
| Region: | Burgundy |
| Grape Type: | Chardonnay |
| Winery: | Maurice Ecard |
| Organic: | Yes |
Intricate and characteristic bouquet of flower and fruit aromas (refreshing citrus fruit, soft pear, crisp apple). An elegantly rich, fruity wine with a hint of nuttiness.
6 months in Oak
The vines are 35 years of age on average. The mainly clay soil is light and stony. The wine's alcoholic fermentation takes place in stainless steel vats after which the wine goes through its malolactic fermentation in oak barrels.
Lightly chilled, it will accompany all fish and shellfish dishes which are not too highly spiced. It will also enhance all white meat dishes as well as making an excellent before dinner apéritif.
Ecard Maurice Bourgogne Rouge Pinot Noir is 100 percent Pinot Noir.
Supple, fresh red wine with distinct fruitiness and showing a lot of the characteristics of the terroir from where the vines are situated with cherry, blackcurrant and raspberry aromas. Discreet tannins in the flavors give a more feminine image.
Growing in light and stony soil made up mainly of clay. The alcoholic vinification takes place in stainless steel vats followed by malolactic fermentation and aging for 6 months in 2 – 4 year old oak barrels.
A good all round red wine for meat courses, grills, barbecues and light cheeses.
Maurice Ecard Savigny Beaune Premier Cru Jarrons is made from 100 percent Pinot Noir
Wine of elegance and good balance. A real complexity with an array of red fruits and a long finish. This is one of our top Burgundy producers and one of his top wines. Any one that takes a chance on this bottle will be rewarded.
Intricate and characteristic bouquet of flower and fruit aromas (refreshing citrus fruit, soft pear, crisp apple). An elegantly rich, fruity wine with a hint of nuttiness.
6 months in Oak
The vines are 35 years of age on average. The mainly clay soil is light and stony. The wine's alcoholic fermentation takes place in stainless steel vats after which the wine goes through its malolactic fermentation in oak barrels.
Lightly chilled, it will accompany all fish and shellfish dishes which are not too highly spiced. It will also enhance all white meat dishes as well as making an excellent before dinner apéritif.
The Maurice Ecard Estate
The Domaine dates back to before 1789 and produces some of the best Premiers Crus in Savigny. Owner Maurice Ecard, who is now retired, was considered by many experts to be the father of the appellation.
His wines are now produced by Vincent Sauvestere. Vincent's paternal family has been firmly established in Meursault since the 18th Century. His father and grandfather were both "Maitres de Chais" for one of the most prestigious Wine Houses in the heart of Meursault. Vincent's father, Roger, created his own company in the early fifties with the acquisition of a Wine Merchant founded in 1891. He also had his own vines, inherited from his mother. In 1988, Roger handed over the running of the company to Vincent. When Vincent, born in Nuits Saint Georges in 1961, took control of the Domaine, it consisted of only 6 hectares (14.81 acres) of vines. Today the Domaine covers 40 hectares (98.77 acres) from Chablis to Meursault. In addition, Vincent has acquired other viticultural Domaines in Chablis, the Côte Chalonnaise and recently in the Rhone Valley.
The Domaine is proud to possess two Grand Cru wines, Corton Charlemagne & Corton Marechaudes, as well as twelve Premiers Cru wines. Through his family's traditional winemaking skills, passed down from generation to generation, and his years of oenological studies, Vincent now advocates:
- Expression of the unique terroir characteristics from each individual vineyard by using traditional winemaking methods.
- Well structured and easy drinking Burgundies :
- Pleasing to the eye
- Soft and supple flavors
- Lingering aftertaste with excellent ageing attributes.
Vincent's constant aim is quality and respect for all wines.
The Maurice Ecard Vineyard
Th domaine is cultivated through organic methods and produces wines that purely and distinctly reflect the terroir. The Premiers Crus include: "Narbantons", "Jarrons", "Serpentieres", "Peuillets" and "Les Clous". The yields are never over 35 hl/ha. The vines are pruned and, when fully mature, harvested by manual selection. Vinification involves 75 to 100% destemming, a classic fermentation, pigeage, racking of the gross lees, 15-18 months in oak (15% new from Damy).
Alain Jaume Lirac Rouge Roquedon is made from 60% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 10% Mourvedre, 10% Carignan.
Inky color. The nose is dominated by aromas of wild fruit (blackcurrant, blackberry) and spices. Long and balanced mouth.
"Roquedon" deliver more of the "round"- "sweet" body from the Grenache, and cherry-red fruit expression. It is dark in color, almost black.
-150x300.jpg "Pomerols Picpoul Pinet H.B. Languedoc 2016")
Pomerols Picpoul Pinet HB Languedoc is made from 100 percent Picpoul.
Pale yellow color with green tints. Fresh and fine aromas of grapefruit and exotic fruit. Lime flavors, with typical focusing acidity, are hallmarks of Picpoul. Our best value, this wine impresses novices and hardened geeks equally.
Review:
"This old-vine cuvée (its members own 450 ha, so Beauvignac has plenty to choose from) is about as sappy and ripely green as Picpoul can get: springtime in liquid form, without much glycerol, majoring on ripe acidity and with a stony, pungent finish."
- Decanter (March 2017), 90 pts
The 2012 Côtes du Rhône is another beauty by this team. Licorice, roasted herbs, pepper and plenty of sweet fruit come together in this medium to full-bodied, layered, and textured effort. Made from 60% Grenache, and Mourvedre and Syrah that saw mostly concrete tank, it’s a smoking Côtes du Rhône (and a fabulous value) to drink over the coming 3-4 years.
This is another impressive lineup from oenolgist Xavier Vignon, who works with the likes of Raymond Usseglio, Le Nerthe, Marcoux and Grand Veneur, to name a few. These are all negociant wines, but they obviously have access to some serious vineyard, and the winemaking is impeccable. Looking at these latest releases, his 2013s buck the vintage stereotype with their ripe, textured profiles, and his 2012s are certainly up with some of the top wines of the vintage as well. In addition, prices remain more than reasonable here. If you haven’t yet discovered these wines, now is a great time. As a side note, I’m halfway through a case of his 2007 Châteauneuf du Pape, with every wine showing brilliantly. These can drink nicely in their youth, yet age beautifully as well. -Wine Advocate 90 Points
Our Chardonnay is grown in the prestigious Russian River Valley which is known for producing wines that marry qualities ofold world and new world Chardonnay styles.The 2014 Hook or Crook Russian River Chardonnay is a graceful balance of a buttery Chardonnay that has bright acids that keep the wine focused.
The wine offers lightly toasted oak notes that bring a toasty, buttery mouthfeel while harmoniously finishing with crisp notes of peach, asian pear, and green apple.
This homage to the Russian River Valley is a delightful wine pairing with many dishes, from swordfish or poached salmon to adventurous wine pairings like Thai curry or Pho.
Blend: Colmant Brut Reserve NV is a blend of Pinot Noir 52%, Chardonnay 48% (Franschhoek, Robertson, Elgin, Somerset-West and Stellenbosch). 10% of the blend is made of reserve wine from the previous vintage and 12% of the base wine is barrel fermented.
Ageing: 28 months minimum on the lees at steady 13°C temperature.
Tasting: A subtle pale gold color with a very clean and elegant nose. The aroma has a gentle spicy toastiness with a lemon / yeasty perfume followed by more mature fruit. Plenty of freshness on the palate, with a good acidity which perfectly balances the yeasty depth, bready flavors and ample structure. Long smooth finish. Will develop nicely over the years.
Drinking tips: Divine as an aperitif and loyal as a party buddy, it also goes perfectly with oysters, sushis or any delicate seafood.
Reviews:
"Fresh with leesy notes, a fine mousse and delicate palate of minerals and green citrus zest, this is a first class New World sparkler. It’s rich enough to enjoy on its own or with white meats. It’s a 50/50 blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay aged on the lees for 30 months and 25% reserve wines from earlier vintages."
-International Wine Review, 91 pts
"Disgorged February 2011, the Non-vintage Brut Reserve is a blend of 52% Pinot Noir and 48% Chardonnay based on the 2008 vintages blended with reserve wines from 2007 and 2006 (25% of the blend), aged for 30 months on the lees. It has a very fine pettillance in the glass. The nose is very well defined with crushed stone, oyster shell and the subtle perfume of fine lees coming through with aeration. The palate is very crisp and lively on the entry with vibrant acidity, a citrus thread from start to finish, and though it is not a powerful Cap Classique, it is wonderfully poised with great persistence on the fresh lime and Granny Smith-tinged finish.
There are many alternatives to Champagne, and South Africa is no exception with some fine “Method Cap Classique.” Jean-Philippe Colmant hired winemaker Nicolas Follet to create a small range of impressive sparkling wines; they eschew malolactic fermentation and practice extended lees aging."
- eRobertParker.com , 92 pts
Our Hunt for Colmant:
It was day 6 in South Africa and we find ourselves outside of beautiful Cape Town, in the country near the Riebeek Kasteel area in Swartland. Let's talk a little about my accommodations before I tell you about this amazing bubbly. We arrive at the one and only hotel in Riebeek to find out that there were not enough rooms open for all.
We reached out to our contact at Riebeek cellars, who we will refer to as "Point Break" from now on. For those of you that have not seen the movie Point Break, this guy looked and sounded like a blonde Keanu Reeves with a Dutch accent. Anyway, Point Break tells me that they have secured a small bed and breakfast that we could use for the overflow. Sounded nice...so I opted for it.
Upon arrival, the home was beautiful on the outside with a catchy French name, "Shades of Provence". After Point Break fiddled with the skeleton key and lock for a good 35 minutes in the rain, we finally get to see the inside of our new home. The door opened straight into the kitchen where the first thing I noticed was the mouse sh*t all over the place. It was winter there and the mice were trying to stay warm, I'm sure. Little did they know this damn place had no heat.
Besides myself and my fiancee Sylvia, there were 3 other people and a total of four rooms. At this point I knew I better drag both our suitcases up those steps and get to the best room before everyone else. At stroke-causing speed, I skipped up the steps nearly knocking Point Break on his back and went through the rooms. I settled for a nice corner room with the least amount of dirt on the concrete floor and with only one or two spider webs on the wrought iron bed post.
For dinner that night, we returned to the hotel restaurant to join the rest of our group. The 5 of us forced to stay in the bed and breakfast were in a far worse mood than everyone around us. Arriving late, we sat at the end of the dinning table and hoarded as much wine as possible to try and drink ourselves to a point where we could sleep in that disgrace of a French country side home that Point Break secured for us.
That night, I slept with the lights on, all my clothes on, and on top of the sheets hoping to avoid spider bites. I awoke that morning to Sylvia standing over me holding what looked like a hot water knob off of the shower. "It wasn't even attached.", she said. Sylvia proceeds to take a "whore-bath" in the sink using her own packed sock as a wash cloth. It was the only thing she deemed clean. To top it off, in a brief moment of happiness she finds a hair dryer in a cabinet. She pulled it out in triumph only to realize that there was a used condom stuck to the side of it. Obviously, this is her last trip to South Africa.
This great dry white wine offers a unique style with a fine and delicate minerality... Beautiful tension on the palate followed by hints of flower, melon and lime, that finishes with a refreshing crispness.
MAISON ALAIN DE LA TREILLE is located in the heart of Loire Valley since 1885. Vineyards owner and winemaker, ALAIN DE LA TREILLE creates diverse and delicate wines on the most prestigious vineyards: Muscadet, Touraine, Vouvray, Sancerre...
Average age of the vines is 20 years old.
We produce a part of this cuvee with 12 hours skin maceration and another part from directly pressed grapes
Wine was slightly filtered before bottling to ensure wine will remain stable.
Ideal with all fishes, seafood and for sure oysters but do not hesitate to match it as well with a great goat cheese.
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Mullineux Swartland Syrah is 100 percent Syrah
Winemaking:
Hand picked grapes are cooled in our cold room, where after they are crushed and destemmed to tank, and between 20 to 50% whole bunches are added. 25ppm SO2 is added, and as with all our wines, no other additions are made. The must is initially pigeaged once a day. After about 4 days, fermentation begins with indigenous yeasts, and the wine is pigeaged once or twice a day, depending on extract and tannin development. Temperatures are not allowed to exceed 30 degrees centigrade. Fermentation lasts from 7 to 10 days, and after fermentation, two to four weeks (also depending on tannin development) skin contact is given. The wine is then drained and pressed to barrel for malolactic fermentation and maturation. The different parcels are racked in Spring to blend the wine, which is then returned to barrel and bottled unfiltered and unfined after 11 months in barrel. Please decant (or give time!) when drunk young.
Maturation:
11 months, French oak 225L & 500L barrels, and 2000L Foudre. 15% new wood in total.
Tasting Note:
Black pepper, crushed ripe berry, and tobacco aromas linger on the nose. This juice is every bit of full-bodied on the palate. Well integrated tannin gives the wine a silky texture. Flavors of blackberry, herb, and spice layer throughout and into the long silky finish. This is a big wine that can take on another 10+ years of age and will need some serious decanting if consumed early. 30 minutes of decanting will allow the wine to open beautifully.
Review:
Swartland (13.5%) Seven different vineyards on a combination of granite, schist and iron soils make up the blend of this brilliant, textbook Syrah. Running to 35,000 bottles, it has a touch of new oak, wonderful fragrance and perfume, some whole bunch grip and a smoky, brambly mid palate. 2017-23 - Tim Atkins 94 Points
"The 2015 Syrah includes two additional vineyards on granite soils after the 2015, whilst the whole bunch component is back up to 60%. It has a clean and precise bouquet with floral-tinged red berry fruit (red cherry and wild strawberry), nicely focused and developing more intensity with aeration. The palate is very well balanced with crisp acidity, fine structure, much more detail than the 2014 and I think that is down to the higher whole bunch proportion, the sense of energy flowing through on the long finish. Compared to the 2014 Syrah, I much prefer this: more freshness and complexity. - Neal Martin"
- Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (Issue #230, April 2017), 93 pts
Luis Canas Reserva Seleccion de la Familia Rioja is made from 85% Tempranillo and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon
Aged for 20 months in new oak barrels - 50% French 50% American.
45 years old vines
Alcohol: 14,5º
Total acidity: 5,73 g./l.
Volatile acidity: 0,73 g./l.
PH: 3,53
Free SO2: 28 mg./l.
Reducing sugars: 1,3 g./l.
The “family reserve” from one of Rioja Alavesa’s most enduring family-run wineries. Wines destined to be the Reserva de la Familia label are made from a selection of grapes from old vines, those which combine a series of characteristics such as good orientation and exposure to the sun, and a poor soil which ensures low yields.
This wine is one of very few Rioja wines to blend Cabernet Sauvignon with Tempranillo. Bodegas Luis Cañas was granted permission by the D.O.Ca. to plant this variety as an experiment in the early 1980s.
Tasting notes
A brillant garnet color with cherry hints on the edges.
The nose offers a complex variety of aromas that combine to bring an intense and sophisticated wine. Initially we can find very ripe berry fruits, smoky notes, raisins and liquor. After a certain amount of aeration, the cinnamon and jam notes appear and, with a little more time, the roasted and spiced aromas are noticed more clearly.
The palate is full, with a good presence of tannins, although these are offset by the glycerine like character, resulting in a fleshy sensation. Long lasting and lingering finish.
Winemaking and aging:
The grapes were cold macerated for 72 hours upon arrival at the winery. They underwent fermentation at 26º C in sealed cement tanks under constant thermal control, with the must pumped over daily. With the paste devatted by gravity, spontaneous malolactic fermentation took place after 45 days.
The wine was aged for 20 months in 50% medium toasted American and 50% French oak barrels. The barrel ageing not only adds tannins from the wood, but stabilizes the wine naturally. After the final racking, it was clarified in tanks with a small amount of natural egg white, decanted after 30 days and bottled directly without any type of filtration. Because this wine’s evolutionary cycle is quite slow, only corks of the highest quality available were used to ensure that it could be prolonged for several years.
Reviews:
"The 2012 Reserva Selección de la Familia is Tempranillo with 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, which makes it different from the majority of reds from Rioja. It matured 50/50 in French and American oak barrels for 20 months. It's slightly more international than the rest of the bottlings, the Cabernet adding some weight. There are notes of toasted sesame seeds and a touch from the French oak. It's clearly different, so it's a matter of preference which one you like best. 125,250 bottles produced. - Luis Gutierrez"
- Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (Issue #235, February 2018), 91 pts
